As Carbon sinks, forests are even mightier than assumed (via @NYTimes, sourced from @OdeWire)

As ‘Sinks’ for Carbon, Forests Are Even Mightier Than Assumed By JOANNA M. FOSTER The world’s forests are magnificent palaces of biodiversity, teeming with wacky and wonderful creatures and plants that seem otherworldly. But they’re also something far more mundane although useful: they’re giant sponges, soaking up vast amounts of carbon dioxide. Abel Monteagudo A tropical forest in Ecuador. According to a study published online on Thursday by the journal Science, the world’s forests absorb 2.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide each year, or about one-third of the carbon dioxide released through the burning of fossil fuels. The lead author, Yude Pam, a research forester at the Forest Service, describes the study as the most comprehensive analysis of the global carbon budget to date. It shows that forests are a far more significant carbon sink than previously thought. At the sa...